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One of the most fond memories I have when I was younger was making pancakes for breakfast using bisquick baking mix. Its so much easier and quicker than making pancakes from scratch! However, because of the added preservatives and trans fats in bisquick, my mom stopped it. Since then I have been making them using my go-to recipe, which actually requires some work (not complaining though, they taste great!). But there are just those days when you don’t feel like getting the kitchen dirty and doing tons of dishes. Thankfully, I was sent three boxes of the amazing Kodiak Cakes mix! This is a pancake/waffle mix that is all natural, full of whole grains, has no added fat, sugar or cholesterol! All the ingredients are clean and minimally processed, not to mention they taste great! Here are the flavors I received:

Whole Wheat Oat and Honey Frontier Flapjack and Waffle Mix:

Taste: Love this flavor and its texture; so light and fluffy its hard to imagine that all you did was add water! Love that the honey flavor comes through slightly, not too sweet but just enough! Also super filling because of the whole grains!

Taste: The texture is light just like the original mix, but its more fluffy because of the addition of the non-fat buttermilk! The added vanilla flavor mixes with the honey flavor well to create a sweeter taste!

Taste: The same great taste of kodiak cakes but with more protein! These are the perfect filling breakfast! And of course no compromised–inexpensive fillers such as bleached flour, white sugar, and artificial additives!

No it’s not oatmeal, no it’s not pumpkin bread, it’s called a Pumpkin Breakfast Bake. A happy medium between the 2 favorites of mine, perfect for this fall weather and the upcoming pumpkin craze. It’s everything pumpkin bread is, fluffy, hearty, and delicious, with an extra “oomph” of the chocolate chips and crunchy nuts! I’ll admit it, Im a huge fan of pumpkin, I have it year-round, not just in autumn. If you want the taste of pumpkin bread but you don’t have the patience for baking it, make this single serving chocolate chip pumpkin bread in a mug and it will satisfy your cravings, trust me.

Wow am I in love with these babies! Who doesn’t love a good fruit spread? It taste great on anything; toast, english muffins, quick breads, in yogurt, cottage cheese, and even on grilled chicken! But unfortuently no one like all the added sugar that comes along with it. Most spreads pack in about 7 grams of sugar per tablespoon!! Many are laced with high fructose corn syrup!

Thankfully I have the answer to your prayers, the no-added sugar line of delicious fruit butters at Kauffmans Fruit Farm! I was lucky enough to receive FOUR different flavors of this amazing fruit butter line! All at 10 CALORIES A TBSP OR LESS! Only sweetened with 100% fruit juice with no additives or artificial stuff! You have to try these delicious fruit butters, they are the most amazing tasting, clean, healthy and perfectly sweetened I have ever tried, you won’t regret it! 🙂

Potato salad is a summer staple, but with all of that mayo, cream-cheese, butter, you name it, its not very forgiving on your waistline, or very clean at all. I absolutely am in love with sweet tators! They taste like pure heaven to me and I wanted to create my own version of the so-called “potato salad.” Not only did I create my own version of the popular dish, but I added my own flair to it as well. With the addition of cilantro, lime and pistachio flavors, this salad takes on a whole different level full of flavor blasting goodness, unlike none other! This recipe is perfect for 4th of July or your next summer cookout, it’ll be sure to impress, guaranteed!

Cilantro Pistachio Sweet Potato Salad with Balsamic-Lime Dressing

4 medium sweet potatoes, cooked

2 Tbsp, cilantro, finely chopped

2 Tbsp. pistachios, finely chopped

Dressing:

2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. lime juice

1 tsp. honey

1 tsp. mustard

Peel off the skins of the sweet potatoes, and cut them into small cubes.

Mushrooms are good, portabellos are even better, but stuffed portabellos are the best! These big, meaty monsters have been hanging around in my fridge for the past few days, so I decided to make something with them, something creamy, something filling, something delicious! These stuffed bundles will satisfy meat lovers and vegetarians alike! These are a wonderful and filling dinner to satisfy your nutritional needs and taste buds! Think of them like a double stuffed potato, but mushroom style! It taste like garlic mashed potatoes are stuffed into these mushrooms, creating a creamy and in-your-face flavor!

Spinach and Garlic Potato Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

6 portabella mushrooms, stemmed and washed

2 potatoes, cooked and skins peeled off

1 cup spinach

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

salt and pepper

1 small tomato, sliced

shredded mozzarella cheese, or vegan cheese (optional)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place mushrooms on cooking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Cook for about 20-25 minutes, or until mushrooms are tender.

While mushrooms are cooking, Place potatoes, spinach, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper in a food processor. Blend for about 1 minute, or until mixture is smooth.

Fill mushrooms with potato mixture and top with sliced tomatoes and cheese (if desired).

Pancakes, pancakes, pancakes, that is literally all I have been thinking about this weekend. I have been looking forward to making them, but not all the unhealthy flour and butter that is in them. So I figured, how should I make my own healthy and clean version? I didn’t want to make regular pancakes because that’s what everyone does, so I thought, “why not make a oven-puffed pancake?” So I did and it was extremely easy and simple, not to mention the best pancake I have ever eaten in my life. This little guy is banana bread in pancake version, you have to try this, especially since it’s paleo and is all good!

Oven-Puffed Banana Bread Pancake

2 egg whites

1/4 coconut flour

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

1/2 small banana, ripened

2.5 Tbsp. unsweetened almond milk

1 tsp. honey

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Blend for about 30 seconds, or until mixture is smooth.

Spray two ramekins (or other small pans) with cooking spray. Add pancake mixture to ramekins and slice other banana to place on top.

Bake in oven for about 25 minutes (or until fully cooked).

Top with high-quality maple syrup, if desired.

Enjoy!

Health Benefits:

Paleo-friendly

Gluten-free

Whole 30 approved (if leaving out honey)

Natural sugar from honey and banana

No added sugar

All-natural

Low-fat

Low-calorie: approx. 210 calories for the whole recipe (not including the syrup)!

You are all probably looking at this post right now with a scrunched up face thinking, “what the heck is a coconaner cream sandwich, I don’t get it.” Well no more confusion here friends, Coconaner is short for Coconut and Banana, I know, I know, pretty smart, eh? But anyways this right here is the perfect summer treat! Incredibly refreshing and oh so tasty! Plus they have a crunchy and sweet oat filling! I was looking through my freezer and found Ice cream sandwiches and was shocked to find they were loaded with 20 grams of sugar each! Not to mention artificial ingredients that I couldn’t even pronounce! Enough said! These clean frozen treats have no preservatives and the only sugar coming from honey, making them naturally sweet and delish! Go ahead and make them, and eat them before they are all gone!

mmmmm that strawberry sauce just completes these little sammys. Oh so good!

Frozen Coconaner Cream Sandwiches with Strawberry Sauce

1 ripe banana

Coconut Cream from a can of coconut milk (the fluffy stuff on top)

1/2 tbsp honey

3 tbsp dry oats

1 tbsp honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Blend the banana, coconut cream and 1/2 tbsp honey in a food processor until smooth. Divide mixture into a cake pop pan and freeze for about 2 hours, or until hardened.

2. Mix oats with honey and vanilla extract. Place oat mixture in between 2 coconaner creams and make the “sandwiches.”

So it happened again, I got a little too carried away made another english muffin. They are just so easy quick and delicious that I could not help myself! But this time I made a more unique flavor. Bananas + Salted Caramel = HEAVEN! Add some natural peanut butter and the rest of the banana, and you got yourself a beautiful, fiber-filling, tasty breakfast in a mere 4 minutes!

1/3 cup oat flour (1/3 cup pulverized oats)

1/2 small banana

1 egg white (2 Tbsp. applesauce for a vegan option)

1 prune

4 whole unsalted cashews

1/8 tsp. baking soda

1/8 tsp. flaked salt

1/8 tsp. vanilla extract

Add all ingredients into a food processor and pulverize for about 30 seconds (or until ingredients are fully mixed.

Spray cooking spray in a mug and add mixture.

microwave for about 2 1/2 – 3 minutes (or until fully cooked).

Top with natural peanut butter and the other half of banana, if desired.

I was feeling very tropical today, ya know, like beachy, except I’m not at the beach right now, which isn’t the point. But, I had loads of fresh pineapple in the fridge, which got me in the tropical mood in the first place, so I thought “lets make something with this pineapple.” So I did, and it was fricken delicious, a Pineapple English Muffin, microwaved. It can’t get any easier than this, or tastier. This baby is as clean as possible, not to mention loaded with nutrients! Perfect for a rushed morning, this muffin will make you think you are at the beach(but only for a moment).